Gaming, films and the pursuit of Pokemon.

Tag Archives: camera

Everyone has those games which they end up accumulating through various ways and means which never seem to get played. A while back I bought a bundle of N64 which contained a few classics, Donkey Kong 64 among them, which contained a few titles that I had little to no interest in playing.

One of these titles that just sat there gathering dust was Pokemon Snap; it’s not that I thought the game would be bad I just never really got around to trying it out. As it turned out, this was this was a mistake because Pokemon Snap actually is a bit of a gem. For those who are too young to remember, Pokemon Snap is an on rails photography game. Professor Oak is making a Pokemon report and has commissioned you to take photos to add to his report.

Admittedly, this sounds terrible, but the game is actually both fun and addictive. You sit in a high-tech vehicle which travels through various terrains and your job is to take photos of as many different Pokemon as possible with points being awarded at the end for the quality of the photographs. Extra points are awarded for the subject being in the centre of the shot, the pose, the sizing and whether there are multiple Pokemon in the photo. It sounds easy, but it is actually quite challenging as they are fast moving and often hiding, attacking other Pokemon, etc.

As you photograph new Pokemon, more levels are unlocked and items are awarded for use in helping to photo more Pokemon such as food to lure them to good locations, or Pester Balls to flush rarer Pokemon out of hiding. This makes the game more complicated than you might initially expect, and the frustration becomes so real when you just miss that perfect shot that would give you the highest score. It can be quite painstaking to lure multiple Pokemon to one spot for a perfect shot but the satisfaction of pulling it off is great, as is the lavish praise received from Professor Oak. By throwing balls and food you can also make the Pokemon fight, faint and evolve which prompts Oak to declare your photos as ‘very funny’ and give you extra points. Apparently Professor Oak has a pretty simplistic sense of humour.

I was surprised by how addictive this game is; although the game only has about 7 or 8 levels the longevity is there as it really is hard to resist going back through a level to try and get the maximum amount of points and to flush out new Pokemon. In a way, I suppose the game also teaches you the rudimentary points of photo composition too, although some photos which are clearly amazing snapshots are rejected by Oak on the ridiculous grounds of being slightly off centre. I suppose the compulsion to maximise the points and discoveries is the same drive behind filling out a Pokedex within one of the main entries in the franchise. Perhaps that’s why I am such a sucker for this game; or maybe it really is just a bright and charming (and somewhat odd) addition to the franchise which I regret overlooking for so long.

To get an idea of what to expect, please find a link to the first level below, brought to you by Nintensoft.